. >> when i walked into the oval office, hi more than a trillion dollar deficit greeting me and we know where it came from. >> soon their approaches changeed. president obama versus mitt romney and is this round 1 or a knockout blow? the candidates are in a different place tonight and tom fitzgerald fooled their movements and turned -- turned into spin rooms. tom. >> reporter: the democratic position was that mitt romney's performance last night, in their words, is at odds with what he's saying on the campaign trail and privately, they're acknowledging what many have been saying, that governor romney had a good debate and the president is going to be under pressure to do better next time. the president tried to refrain the debate saying the mitt romney he saw last night had little resemblance to what the president said romney's policies are. governor romney himself, meanwhile s meeting with supporters in colorado. romney said the debate gave him a chance to frame the campaign for the country for what their choice would be. >> last night, i thought it was a great opportunity for the amer